The film was written by John Killoran (writing the teleplay) and David Diamond and David Weissman (writing the story) and directed by Lev L. Spiro, who received a Director's Guild nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programs for it.[4] Andrew Gunn, Ann Marie Sanderlin and Doug Sloan are the executive producers.[2] The movie was originally slated for release in March 2008,[5] however, the movie premiered on Disney Channel in United States on January 25, 2008 (alongside with Jonas Brothers' music video "When You Look Me In The Eyes").[6]

Contents

Plot[edit]

On the first day of high school, best friends Virgil Fox (Jason Dolley), Derek Beaugard (Steven R. McQueen) and Stephanie Jameson (Chelsea Kane) decide to begin their paths by trying out for various activities. While Derek tries for the football team and Stephanie begins cheerleading, Virgil's high school career takes a bad turn. Charlie Tuttle (Luke Benward), a genius who skipped many grades, rockets onto the field on a rocket-propelled car, losing control until Derek throws a football at him and knocks him off. Virgil defends Charlie while Derek just sits by. Virgil and Charlie are forced to dress as cheerleaders and are hung on the school mascot's, a bighorn sheep, horns.

Three years later, senior year, Virgil and Charlie are still outcasts. Charlie informs Virgil that he has brilliantly invented a time machine. Unaware of how to build the time machine, the duo recruits another social outcast named Zeke (Nicholas Braun). When the time machine is built, Virgil, still regretting the first day of high school, decides that he would like to use the machine to undo embarrassing mistakes made by their classmates. They test the time machine out by buying a winning lottery ticket. Forgetting that they are underage, they ask a local mascot to buy it for them, but are forced to return to the present early. This in turn causes the mascot to win the lottery using the numbers they provided.

Jeanette (Kara Crane) helps the trio save outcasts from social embarrassment by providing them with white snowsuits to wear and handles the machine while the boys are time-traveling. The school's vice-principal (J. P. Manoux) attempts to stop the "Snowsuit Guys", the name everybody knows them by.

After the "Snowsuit Guys" are named local heroes, they save Stephanie from falling off her cheerleader's pyramid. Recognizing one of them as Virgil, Stephanie confronts Virgil and he is finally allowed to hang out with the popular kids. After experiencing a humiliating loss at the state championship, Stephanie asks Virgil to help out Derek. Virgil does so and Stephanie informs Derek of the time machine as well, in turn causing the former friends to be reunited. The time machine eventually begins to cause terrible consequences, however. The outcasts,who have now become popular, have let it go to their heads and Virgil begins to abandon Charlie and Zeke in favor of Stephanie. While they begin to hang out again, Stephanie tells him that despite abandoning him, Derek did try to stop the jocks actions. Meanwhile, Stephanie learns that Derek is cheating on her with a girl named Jocelyn and Derek pleads with Virgil to get him to rectify his mistake with the time machine.

The FBI arrives in the town after monitoring suspicious activity. Virgil and Zeke learn that Charlie had stolen the time machine blueprints from the NASA mainframe. After consulting with the government's top scientists, Charlie learns that their continuous uses with the time machine has damaged the space-time continuum, thus created a black hole. With only hours to live, the trio decide to go into the hole and close it. Just before they enter, Jeanette approaches Charlie and kisses him.

Once they have entered the black hole, they are transported back to their first day of high school; as the key component from the time machine was in Charlie's rocket cart. Virgil realizes that he can undo the events that caused him to lose his popularity. When he arrives at the field to stop the humiliating incident, Charlie bitterly tells him that although Virgil hates this day, it's Charlie's favorite day as it's the day he finally got a real friend. Charlie and Zeke leave Virgil to make a decision about what he wants to do. As Virgil watches the incident unfold, he discovers that Derek never defended him at all. Derek had betrayed and abandoned him in favor of gaining popularity, by suggesting to the other teenagers to put lipstick as well as the cheerleader uniforms on Virgil and Charlie. Having come to his senses, Virgil then reunites with Charlie and Zeke in the rocket car.

They manage to close the black hole and return to the day when they first tried time-traveling. Everything goes back to normal and Charlie kisses Jeanette, shocking her and causing Zeke to remind Charlie that they didn't kiss before that point. While Charlie tries to explain, its shown that Jeanette, who has a crush on Charlie, is secretly happy. After that, Virgil confesses his feelings towards Stephanie (and she for him). Virgil confronts Derek, insulting one another: Derek telling Virgil that he will always be a loser and Virgil tells Derek that he will always be an arrogant jerk and to have fun with Jocelyn; as he's still aware of his infidelity. As Virgil and Stephanie embrace, Charlie walks up to them and eagerly suggests a new idea: Teleportation, but Virgil and Zeke drag him off, arguing among themselves and shouting "It's global warming!" and the credits roll.

Cast[edit]

Jason Dolley as Virgil Fox, a social outcast after an embarrassing event

Luke Benward as Charlie Tuttle, a young genius and outcast who is Virgil's best friend

Chelsea Kane as Stephanie Jameson, Virgil's only former friend who still likes Virgil. Virgil has a crush on her. Kane is credited in the film by her previous professional name: Chelsea Staub.

J. P. Manoux as Vice Principal Stewart Tolkan, the vice principal of the school, who clearly favors the popular crowd over the outcasts

Steven R. McQueen as Derek Beaugard, Virgil's former best friend who is now dating Stephanie. He chose popularity over Virgil, but once he find out about Virgil's time-travelling, he starts to use him for his own advantage

Kara Crane as Jeanette Pachelewski, a quirky girl who harbors a crush on Charlie

Dexter Darden as Chester, an outcast who becomes popular due to the actions of the "Snowsuit Guys"

Kellie Cockrell as Jocelyn Lee, a stuck-up popular girl who Derek cheated on Stephanie with

Production[edit]

Disney Channel first released an official press via its press release website DisneyChannelMedianet.com on July 14, 2007 to confirm the production of Minutemen. The lead star, plot, writers, director and executive producers of this movie was also announced in this press. In addition, another 2008 DCOM named Camp Rock, scheduled to begin production in September 2007, was also confirmed in the same press.[2]